User blog:Silent Andromeda/Hellfire: Chapter 23
Previous: Chapter 22 Assimilation "Let go of me!" Nikida shouted as Radian and Gajuro held her down, forcing her helmet off her head. Sardec was helpless as he watched the two generals placed a Kartinava larva on her scalp. "Sardec! I..." Her cry was suddenly replaced with the sounds of blood sputtering. Sardec tried to move his arms and legs, but felt no response as Murak walked up to his tattered body. His tentacles wrapped around his helmet and forcibly removed it. "I'll never concede! I'll..." His mouth suddenly stopped moving and all he could do was whimper. Murak held another larva in his right arm and slowly moved it towards Sardec's head. At that moment, a loud crash was heard, sending a shockwave through Sardec's body. UBP116 Terminal Sardec opened his eyes and found himself inside the transport drill. The vehicle had come to a halt, as it had struck a Mithril deposit. Sardec had taken several deep breaths and rubbed his face. "User Sardec. I am not detecting any threats. Is everything alright?" The VOID Nirvana had asked. "I am alright. Just a very bad dream." "User Sardec. What is a dream?" "You see things... that aren't there." "Are they threatening you?" "Not anymore." He sighed. Sardec checked his coordinates and found himself nearby the UBP116 terminal. He backed the drill away from the Mithril deposit and began his ascent. The ground broke open as the drill reached the surface. The door had opened. Sardec had the AST-KK assault rifle at the ready as he stepped out. Dawn had broken over the surface of UBW-594244. Cargo crates surrounded the area. A small number of Knight-clad Diathel guards were patrolling. Sardec laid prone and crawled into tall grass. The teleport tower had then beamed with life as a portal had appeared. Several Black Hole-clad Turauz soldiers had exited, bringing a heavy transport vehicle. The portal had vanished and the Turauz began speaking with the Diathel. Despite not understanding Kartinava language, Sardec listened closely for familiar pitches, tones, and inflections. The body language of the Diathel indicated they were being relieved of their guard duty. They lowered the guard of their weapons and left the terminal, with the Turauz taking their place as well as attending to the new shipment of material. Sardec seized the opportunity and made his way into the freight yard. He hugged his body against one of the cargo crates, peeking around the corner at a lone guard. The guard had turned towards him and began walking forward. Sardec hid himself before being seen and quietly put away his AST-KK, switching to his HBS-VI Phantom sword, waiting for the moment. The guard had walked by the corner and Sardec quickly jabbed the blade through the guard's head. Blood had splattered out as Sardec quickly grabbed the body before it could fall and make a sound. He gently laid the body on the ground and moved quickly to the next point of cover. He stood near two containers with a gap wide enough to fit a body. A few crates down, he saw three guards carrying a small crate. He considered the risk and decided to take it. He knocked on the nearby crate, catching the attention of the three guards. They talked amongst each other and placed the small crate on the floor, readying their weapons as they slowly approached the source of the sound. Two walked through the narrow gap while one stayed at a distance. Sardec tossed Nirvana in their line of sight. Nirvana unleashed its laser, piercing through both targets and the third standing from a distance. All three bodies fell to the ground. The sound and Nirvana's laser alerted the rest of the security. "Kerrash! Mackden artek!" Footsteps grew louder as the reinforcements arrived at the area, next to the small crate. Sardec took a deep breath and poked out of cover, unloading his AST-KK onto the targets in the open until there were none left standing. Shortly after, grenades were fired from behind various crates, near Sardec's location. He ran away from the explosions and made his way near the teleport tower's console, where he could see some of the guards carrying grenade launchers. He shot the targets he could see before jumping down a slope and avoid return fire. "Arrrrtun! Piknen nasht kenquan!" Based on their sounds, Sardec discerned there were less than four remaining. He switched to the Phantom and morphed it into a bow and made his way to another vantage point. As he got close to a slope, a non-lethal force had struck him. Black dust had surrounded his armor. A Turauz soldier fired a grenade at an angle. The grenade's trajectory was altered and headed straight for Sardec. Sardec saw the incoming grenade and fired energy arrows at the grenade, causing a large explosion and pushing both parties away. The guard shouted at the remaining guards to fire in Sardec's general direction. Grenades flew above the crates, being pulled in by the magnetic dust surrounding Sardec's Krypton armor. Nirvana shot down some grenades while Sardec ran for cover. One grenade bypassed Nirvana, striking Sardec on the side, knocking it down. The thud alerted the guards, bringing them closer. Sardec changed the Phantom back to a sword and readied his arm to throw. Two guards came in his line of sight. He tossed the sword right into the chest of one guard while Nirvana shot at the other guards. "Amangh! Tooin!" Screamed the last guard as it ran for cover. Sardec got back to his feet and swapped to the AST-KK. He stood out in the open, waiting for the final enemy to show itself. "DIE!" It screamed as it popped out of cover. Sardec shot the grenade launcher, causing a failure and exploding in the Turauz' hands, killing it. Spec Ops Sardec made his way for the tower's console. He entered the coordinates for his destination and was about to confirm. At that moment, a bullet struck his shoulder of his armor. He dropped to his stomach as gunfire struck near the railing near the console. A familiar sound was heard as Sardec could feel his body being pulled towards the source. He raised his head and saw Collapsar about to explode. He grabbed the railing and narrowly avoided the force of the explosion. Sardec got to his feet and saw three Falcon-clad soldiers running between crates. "Please! I am not your enemy!" Sardec shouted. There was no response. Catalyst had appeared above one of the crates and deployed its shield. The crate was pushed aside as all three soldiers opened fire at Sardec. Sardec fell backward and down a slope, away from gunfire. Nirvana stayed up and returned fire. "Nirvana! Get over here!" Nirvana had hovered toward Sardec. "User Sardec, they are trying to kill you." "Don't kill them! You hear me? I don't want any of them dead!" "That goes against my protocols. Shall I retreat into your backpack?" "Please do. I will handle them." "Be safe, user Sardec." Nirvana retreated into Sardec's Immortal backpack. He swapped to the Phantom and morphed it into a bow. He got to his feet and ran behind a large crate. He saw one of the soldiers and fired several energy arrows. The soldier saw the arrows and suddenly warped a small distance to the side. "Twilight..." He muttered. "Those VOIDs are my friends! How dare you use them against me!?" He saw the soldier with Collapsar out in the open. The soldier fired his AST-KK at Sardec. forcing him back into cover. Sardec listened closely as his heard the sound of Collapsar being tossed. He leapt out of cover, away from Collapsar, and fired several arrows at the soldier. The arrows struck the chest of the target, causing him to fall down. The Catalyst soldier laid suppressing fire as the Twilight soldier ran for the downed Collapsar soldier. Sardec hid behind cover and stomped the ground. "Damn these foohe Twilight soldier as he tended to his stunned ally. ls! Why has Kellogg made this so much harder than it needs to be?" The suppressing fire ended and Sardec peaked around the corner. He saw Catalyst's shield protecting t "Nirvana, I need you." "What do you require?" "Fire... Fire at Catalyst. Disable the shield." Nirvana poked out of cover and fired at Catalyst. causing the shield to explode. Sardec leapt out of cover and fired energy arrows at the Twilight soldier, knocking him down. The remaining soldier was caught off guard by the explosion. Sardec ran over and fired energy arrows, stunning him. Incomplete Reunion Sardec removed the soldiers' helmets and accessed their HUDs to release the three VOIDs and reconfigure them to himself. "Greetings, user Sardec. I am Collapsar. Use me when explosions are needed." "Hello, user Sardec. I am Twilight. I will help you dodge danger." "U-User Sar-Sar-Sardec. I am Cataly-lyst. I-I-I am in need of repairs." "Good to see you guys. I'm sorry Catalyst." "VOIDs are incapab-b-ble of bearing grudges. Do-Do not wor-ry-ry. "Perhaps if I get you to your makers, they can repair you. If Radian hasn't already killed them, that is..." "Your safety co-co-comes first, user Sardec-ec." Sardec opened a cargo crate and stuffed the stunned soldiers' bodies into it. He made his way to the console and entered the coordinates. The tower beamed with life as a portal began to form. Sardec holstered his weapon as his four VOIDs retreated into his backpack. He took one last look and entered the portal. Sardec felt the usual stinging sensation, followed by an unusual sight. He looked around his destination and did not recognize his surroundings. The environment was of a dark rocky terrain, ruled by a dark gray sky dense with storm clouds. Sardec stood in denial. He closed his eyes and shook his head. "This isn't it. I'm here. I'm where I need to be." He opened his eyes and screamed at the top of his lungs. "How can this be!? Why am I here!? I'm... not ready for this! I'm not... I can't..." Much to Sardec's horror, the portal had sent him somewhere unexpected. Sardec had arrived at planet Hellus. Next: Chapter 24 Category:Blog posts